


picture perfect

by hyunguuon



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Hyungki, M/M, Magic, curse, hyungwon is a statue, kihyun is a photographer, mentions of death (not main character), mistreatment but its only a tiny part of the fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2021-02-19 06:21:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22473220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hyunguuon/pseuds/hyunguuon
Summary: kihyun made a strange discovery while looking for inspiration, a strange but beautiful discovery.
Relationships: Chae Hyungwon/Yoo Kihyun
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11





	picture perfect

as a photographer, looking for inspiration is what kihyun does daily, he’s desperately been trying to find the place that will give him back the passion he’s lost. wandering around was his new hobby, looking around, scrutinising the horizon in hopes to find the perfect place.

lost in the woods, stumbling over a pile of dead humid leaves, he fell, saving ever so slightly his precious film camera. he looked up to find himself at the foot of a few stairs, all white, covered in green vegetation. the contrast was stunning; it reminded him of the plants his mum used to grow in their kitchen, messy and all over the white tiles.

getting up, he walked over the stairs, and found a door hidden behind the overgrown vegetation, barely noticeable. 

the door creaked when kihyun pushed it, ever so slightly, he carefully stepped in, taking in the stunning marble floor. on his left, stood the statue of a man, so fragile and soft, so human, for a statue. kihyun noticed the statue was wearing clothes, flowy and light, and feared to touch it, in case it would decay under his touch. 

the light reflecting on what would be the statue’s skin came from behind him, in the middle of what seemed to be a conservatory laid a majestuous fountain. the whole room soothed kihyun. from the plants going up and down the windows’ golden frames like they belonged there, to the multicoloured shine coming from the sunlight hitting the water, it kind of reminded him of home, gave him enough warmth to forget how damp his clothes were, and gave him a feeling of safety that he couldn’t understand.

kihyun took pictures of every little detail in the room, until the sun started to set behind the trees, and he couldn’t see a thing. he captured every single piece of vegetation crawling across the fountain, the dirt scattering ever so slightly around the grandiose windows, the magnificent reflection of water against the marble. he took it all in, and before he left, kihyun promised the statue that he would come back to finish visiting its magnificent mansion. he was somewhat hoping for an answer, but he knew it was foolish to expect words from a statue. 

a promise was never to be broken in kihyun’s family, and so, a few days later, kihyun entered the mansion once again

this time he easily found it, almost like he was drawn to it. he swore something in here made him feel different, even if his best friend laughed at him heartily when he told him. 

there was no statue to greet kihyun when he came back and he first thought that someone had stolen it, however, he found it standing near the fountain in the conservatory. a wanderer just like him probably had moved it for their photographic convenience. the mansion couldn’t have had an owner, it was humanly impossible to let a place so marvelous go to ruins, kihyun was certain about that. 

kihyun walked up a wooden staircase , careful not to fall through the broken planks. upstairs, he found himself in a long and vast hallway surrounded by plants like the rest of the mansion, and various rooms, all more luxurious than the others. 

he sneaked into one of the bedrooms, the biggest one. there was a big bed next to the window, the white sheer curtains had flown over the bed to make it look like a canopy. there were hints of gold and green all over the room, it looked magnificent, wild but still inhabited. it was odd, but kihyun found it touching. while taking shots of every detail in the room, he imagined the type of person who could’ve lived here in the past. from the porcelain vases to the grand mirror framed with gold and branches of wild heartstrings; he found it unbelievably beautiful. 

kihyun’s heart felt some sort of tug when he caught in the corner of his eye, a perfectly intact and shiny picture frame. under the coat of dust, he could make out three figures, which could be interpreted as parents and their toddler. 

there was a loud noise downstairs, which made kihyun advert his attention away from the picture frame and cut his photoshoot short. he was scared to encounter someone who came here to degrade the place, or worse, a wild animal, he knew well that he was way too young to die eaten by any type of living, animal or human. kihyun carefully walked down the stairs, trying not to make a sound, and snaked through the doorway. 

he didn’t notice the statue wasn’t here anymore, and he didn’t hear any of the sobs.

* * *

after spending too long looking at his pictures of the way too realistic statue, kihyun forgot about his fear of being eaten, and walked back to the mansion. it was going to be a very sunny day, it was still quite early in the morning. he knew no one would bother him this early but still shoved a knife and some pepper spray in his bag, just in case.

the walk to the house was long, but even less of a struggle than the second one, as if the path had been cleared, he even found some ghost orchids on his way, which he took as a good luck sign. the door of the mansion was closed, it had been a while since he came here. something looked off. everything was in its place when he entered, everything but the statue, it had moved again. 

taking careful steps, kihyun walked back upstairs to check on the bedroom he abruptly left the last time he was here. but he didn’t find what he expected. the hallway had been destroyed, some tiles of the marble floor were shattered, the window’s glass shards scattered around the shambles of a broken vase. the picture frame was shattered in the middle of the room.

kihyun was fuming. who could have done that to such a pretty scenery, who could have the heart to break what used to be someone’s house…

« bastards... » kihyun muttered, picking up a piece of the broken frame to examine it. the etching was still beautiful despite the art piece being shattered. 

« you came back, » a soft faint voice was heard, and kihyun would’ve sworn he dreamed that if he didn’t look up to find the statue in front of him. it wasn’t here before. the surprise and fear made kihyun fall back on his bottoms, staring at the statue, not even brave enough to say a word. he probably had glass shards stuck in his jeans. 

« don’t be frightened, i will do you no harm, » the statue spoke once again and crouched to kihyun’s height, offering a hand to the shocked man.

« you- you’re a s-statue? talking… statue? » kihyun stuttered in the softest voice, barely audible. his voice would’ve cracked if he spoke any louder. there were tears forming at the corners of his eyes, he was scared to death, his heart beating in his ears, breathing too fast to be healthy. 

« i am, well, i used to be a human, but it’s been so long since i have had this curse that i cannot really remember how it felt like to be human... » the talking marble spoke and their voice sent shivers down kihyun’s spine with the soft tone it had, contrasting completely from the cold like stone face and body the creature seemed to have. 

thoughts were running through kihyun’s brain, everything was confusing. how could he be sure that this person wasn’t just a normal person making fun of him, what was this curse they were talking about, what were they doing here, and were they even real? « a curse? » was all he could fish out of his brain at the time, and the simplicity of the question didn’t bother the statue.

the creature chuckled, « i can tell you about that another time, for now get up from this mess i made the other day, i wouldn’t want you to be hurt because of my carelessness. » 

it was them who had broken everything in this room, and he could only wonder why they would do such a thing to such a majestic room.

the statue smiled when kihyun took the hand they offered him, carefully. kihyun felt his legs shake when he stood up, his mind was a mess, and his blood pressure probably too high for his own good, making him fall to the floor again, unconscious this time.

the light was faint when kihyun woke up; soft pillows under his head and a fluffy blanket trapping him away from any movement. he whimpered trying to untangle himself from the soft trap, catching the statue’s attention from the foot of the bed. 

“i’m sorry i haven’t tucked anyone in bed in a while, i probably squeezed you too hard in this comforter.” 

it was an eerie view to have, and kihyun could’ve sworn he was dreaming when the statue stood up and smiled innocently at him, untucking the blanket from underneath his numb body. 

“there, much better. i hope you’re not too cold…” 

kihyun tried to hide the shivering of his body, realising it was way too dark and cold to be the middle of the day. 

“how long have i been out for?” he questioned 

“the sun went from the east greenhouse, to behind the trees, so i would say about seven hours.”

kihyun nodded, not realising he had been staring at the statue’s perfectly shaped face until they smiled softly at him. a few candles had been shining hues of orange and reds, shaking but never making their face show any type of imperfection. 

“my name is hyungwon,” they paused for a moment, thinking. “or was, i don’t know anymore.” they were staring at the broken picture frame with a sad smile. 

“i’m kihyun.” said man saw where they were staring off to and spoke once more. “ are you the baby from the picture?” 

hyungwon went and picked up the photograph from under the glass debris. their movements seemed painful for them, all of his body seemingly heavy and kihyun wondered if he was really made of marble. kihyun could have almost felt their pain when they crouched and stayed in this position. 

“yes, i was my mum’s favourite little boy. that’s what she always told me, but i was an only child.” hyungwon had started before pausing for a few minutes. 

their body wasn’t moving, they weren’t breathing, and as poetic as it might sound, it looked painful. 

“my father got me cursed. we were a happy family when mum passed away… father wanted a new family, he had found another wife after a while, but he was unable to have children. they had tried everything when i suggested they went to meet this witch in a nearby town. she said he could only get children if i was to stop breathing, leaving all memories of my mum behind. i don’t know why he agreed, he must have loved his new wife, probably more than he did love me…” hyungwon stopped for a while, as if he was pausing to breathe deeply. 

kihyun walked over to their crouched figure and sat on the floor, a hand on their freezing shoulder. he realised hyungwon was crying, pearls were falling down on their stone cheeks and they looked so human, so human yet so not. 

“later that day, when they came back home with a smile, i thought that everything would be okay for them and i was happy. i can even remember father saying to his new wife, i quote “he’s not ready for what i have to say”. i thought it was happy news but they never told me anything about it. it was when i started feeling extremely cold and that my toes and fingers had started hardening that i realised something was wrong. the witch came over that night, to explain what she had done to me. her contract was to make me stop breathing, in other words i was supposed to die, but she had enough pity for me to keep my heart and brain alive. she made me a statue and made me able to live without breathing, but obviously i had to leave. i never saw my father again, and he never said goodbye to me. the witch said there was a cure, something about true love i don’t remember, it’s been so long …” 

“maybe you need to find true love to become human again?” kihyun suggested. as cliche as it may sound, it was still a possibility. 

“probably, but how can i find love when i can barely go out? i’m so slow and fragile… i broke a toe walking upstairs.” 

kihyun couldn’t help but giggle at his remark, and spoke up again. “ you still meet people, look at me, i’m here!” 

hyungwon was definitely unconventionally beautiful, his dainty face looked unrealistic with his big features but it made him eerily attractive, his big eyes looked dull but it was very obvious that his real eyes were soft and warm, his lips, if they were made of skin, would be plump and fleshy, his nose was perfectly round and few moles were scattered over his face and neck. he was definitely made of stone, but certainly visually pleasing. he seemed to be 

lost in his thoughts when he blurted: “do you love me, kihyun?” 

“ wow calm down cowboy we just met. but i can state that you’re very handsome. i truly wish you to find love, and hope your dad died or something.” 

“he probably did, what year is it ?”

“it’s 2019.”

“he would be 132, he’s probably dead.” 

“and you’re probably in your fifties.” 

“ technically i just have the years, i don’t have the looks nor the experience a fifty year old would have.” 

after a while of talking, kihyun realised it was pitch black outside, and hyungwon refused to let him leave in the dark. and so kihyun spent the night in this bed, next to his peculiar but oh so lovely new friend. 

* * *

kihyun had been so busy all week, unable to even rest for more than his usual 7 hours of sleep, a stress pimple had even appeared on his forehead. finals were approaching and all of his lecturers had decided to give him work to do due the same week. he tried his best to balance working on his final project, doing his homework and revising, but his mind always went back to his friend back in his lonely house. he couldn’t get him out of his mind, as much as he tried. he felt bad leaving him all alone. 

it hadn’t been long since they met, but long enough for kihyun to get attached to the sweet man. he always stayed for hours to talk to him, to learn more about him. they both knew a lot about each other and kihyun was eager to know him better. it was interesting to listen to hyungwon’s calm voice, and honestly speaking, kihyun could’ve stayed there listening to him sing the alphabet for days if he could. there was something about hyungwon that intrigued kihyun, apart from the fact that he was a living statue, something else made him drawn to the other.

in between two cramming sessions, an idea sparked in kihyun’s mind, and that’s how he found himself happily walking back to the mansion, forgetting all about his work. 

“hyungwon?” 

kihyun heard a gasp and loud, hurried steps walking over the entrance from the conservatory. 

“what are you doing here? i didn’t expect you to come over so soon, it's only been four nights!”

“i felt bad knowing that you were all alone so i got you a gift!” kihyun said excitedly.

hyungwon looked at him with furrowed brows and took kihyuns hand to slowly walk him to a couch in what seemed to be a fancy study room. 

“look,” he took out a white paper bag out of his backpack and handed it to hyungwon who carefully opened the box inside. “i got you a phone!” 

“what in the hell is that …”

“you know, a phone, you use it to call people and send them texts! i’ll show you how it works don’t worry! but i felt bad knowing you weren’t talking to anyone, it must’ve been boring.”

“hm… thank you kihyun that’s very nice of you.”

“no it’s okay! i want you to be happy now!”

“you’re really cute when you’re excited, kihyun” 

deciding to just ignore what had been said, because he was highly aware of how red his cheeks were, kihyun took the phone off of hyungwon’s marble hands in order to show him how to work the tiny phone. he had been clever to buy a keypad phone because, after a long thinking process of which device would aesthetically fit better in hyungwon’s hands, he realised his fingertips were made of stone, and there was no way a touchscreen would work. even though he could’ve bought him a pair of gloves, those that work on phones, he preferred to go with an oldie but goldie blackberry. it seemed big enough and, to kihyun’s pleasure, aesthetically pleasing enough. 

they spent the whole afternoon on the phone, kihyun fondly explaining every little detail it had before leaving hyungwon to go back to his studying. 

* * *

it was late at night now, kihyun realised from the digital clock standing proudly on his pristine white nightstand, which showed 3:24am. he had worked for more than 7 hours already, and his brain had worked so much he was convinced that some steam came out of his ears at some point. 

stretching his arms over his head, kihyun picked his phone that had been charging from his bed and made his way to the bathroom while sleepily checking his notifications. he was about to block the number that had been spam messaging him non stop for the last few hours when he realised it was hyungwon, texting him about everything and anything, from the cute lizard he saw, to the piece of wood that he broke while walking up the stairs. hyungwon had also gotten the hand of picture taking because attached to an eerily written keyboard smash, was a picture of his face, taken with his back camera. and kihyun laughed, for at least 3 minutes, before typing an answer to each text he had received. it was sweet to see hyungwon speedily answer, but it wasn’t really surprising, since that’s all he had to do anyways. 

_**K:** you seemed to have lots of fun with your camera there _

_**H:** I didn’t want you to forget what I look like.  _

_**H:** I forget what you look like when you don’t come by.  _

_**K:** we met twice hyungwon _

_**H:** We didn’t. You came over before, and I even scared you once.  _

_**K:** oh so that was you, the noise? i thought i was gonna get eaten by some beast or something  _

_**H:** I am no beast. Please send me a picture.  _

_**K:** a pic of what?  _

_**H:** You.  _

_**K:** u sound like a creep, statue boy, but there you go, fresh out of the shower  _

_ [image attached]  _

_**H:** Thank you cowboy. You’re handsome.  _

_**K:** …. cowboy?  _

_**K:** you know what nevermind, i’m going to bed hyungwon, sleep well  _

_**H:** You called me cowboy once, term of endearment.  _

_**H:** I don’t sleep, but thank you. _

_**H:** Sleep well cowboy.  _

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading ! please let me know what you think of it! 
> 
> kudos and comments appreciated !!! 
> 
> [ twitter ](http://twitter.com/luvwons/)  
> [ curiouscat ](http://curiouscat.me/luvwons)


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